AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Oh, yes!” Isabel caught the books as they tipped off her head and turned to her cousin. “I want to go! I haven’t seen Hyde Park yet, and I really want to go.”
Lady Blythcourt pursed her lips.
“You should be getting on with your lessons, and we’re not halfway done yet.”
“Please?” Isabel was almost bouncing up and down. “I’ll come back and work really hard afterwards, I promise! I won’t let you down.”
Lady Blythcourt looked like she was about to argue. But then she nodded.
“All right. I think all of us could do with going out for a stretch of the legs. Go and get yourself ready, and we’ll all go together.”
From Lady Dunley’s expression, she would have preferred to go alone with her daughter, but she didn’t say anything. Isabel didn’t dare herself; she understood what Lady Blythcourt was trying to do, and she was doing it as a favour. She didn’t want to sound ungrateful, even if she was getting fed up with the lessons.
Despite that, Lady Blythcourt was a warm, friendly woman. She could be strict when she needed to be, but the knowledge that came out of her was remarkable. Although Isabel could have done without the tangents when Lady Blythcourt started talking about her husband on something that didn’t seem to be relevant. And Macaroon was a pain, walking right across her when Isabel was trying to concentrate or demanding attention when she was doing her writing.
She could do without the dog.
Putting the books aside, Isabel hurried from the room and went upstairs. She would normally have left in the dress she was wearing but was told there were specific garments for different things. Everyone must change to leave the house. Isabel couldn’t see why; it was so tedious. Why couldn’t one dress be appropriate for everything?
Arnaud was in her mistress’ bedroom, putting the sheets on the bed. Isabel went to the wardrobe.
“I’ve got to get ready to go out, Arnaud. Will you help me?”
“Yes, Miss Moore.” Arnaud came to join her, peering over Isabel’s shoulder as she looked through the new dresses she’d had bought for her. “I think the yellow one would be good for you, miss.”
“Do you think so?”
“Yes. Do you want help?”
“Please. I want to leave as soon as possible.”
Isabel was feeling positively giddy, knowing she was going to Hyde Park. That had been something she had wanted to do since she realized they were close by and could see a bit of it from her bedroom window. She needed to go and see what it was like and seeing it from her window wasn’t enough for her.
Between her and her maid, they managed to get her changed into her walking dress with matching gloves and shoes, along with the hat she would wear outside, and Isabel hurried downstairs. The other ladies were already in the entrance hall, ready to go. Lady Dunley smiled at her daughter as Isabel came down the stairs.
“That looks really good on you, Isabel. Yellow’s really your colour.”
“I told you it would look the best on her,” Lady Blythcourt declared. She beamed. “You’re going to make a lot of men turn their heads, my dear. Now, shall we go?”
They stepped out into the street, Isabel trying not to fall down the steps. How anyone could go up and down these in skirts was beyond her. Lady Dunley said it was a knack you got used to. Although Isabel didn’t think anyone could get used to these steps. She had a feeling they were going to catch her out many times.
The four of them headed towards the park, and Isabel’s eyes fairly popped out of her head when she saw how vast it was. She had been too tired and scared to notice much when they first arrived, but Hyde Park simply stretched out right across the landscape. There were so many trees, so much grass, and so many different paths. Isabel was struck at how something this magnificent could be present in the middle of the city.
She and Lady Hester fell back, and Lady Dunley and Lady Blythcourt went on ahead, both women pointing out people they recognized. Lady Hester soon moved on ahead and started joining in with the conversation. She looked just as energetic as her mistress, although Lady Blythcourt gently scolded her when Hester started talking about various minibeasts and creatures that lived in the park. Nobody wanted to talk about insects.
Isabel wanted to join in, but she was beginning to feel left out. She was starting to feel a little overwhelmed. She was wearing a dress that she had only worn once in the shop when they bought it, and it felt like everyone was staring at her. Isabel tried to keep her head up and walk as if she belonged there, but it was difficult. She could feel the urge to turn around and run away.
She couldn’t do it. If she couldn’t do this in the park with no expectations, how could she do it in a confined space?
There was a large pond at the bottom of the slope to her right, and Isabel saw that as a refuge. She hurried to her mother’s side.
“I’m going to circle the pond and come back to meet you, Mother.”
Lady Blythcourt gasped.
“You can’t do that, Isabel!”
“Why not?”
